Students, staff and faculty from across the various University of South Florida and USF Health colleges gathered at the Center for Advanced Medical Learning and Simulation (CAMLS) for the USF Health 6th Annual Interprofessional Education Day. 

In the wake of a global pandemic, burnout and a variety of other mental health problems are contributing factors to hospitals being understaffed. This year’s theme “Caring for Caregivers: Fostering Mental Health and Wellness in Interprofessional Teams” focused on solutions to help combat those issues and improve the quality of patient care across the profession.   

“Our USF IPE Day working group felt it was critical to focus on this topic given the current challenges that our health care system is facing with health care professionals leaving their professions, increased provider burnout and high rates of mental health issues, including depression and suicide,” said Haru Okuda, MD, FACEP, FSSH, executive director of CAMLS and associate vice president of the USF Health Office of Interprofessional Education and Practice.

Approximately 700 people (500 virtually, 200 in person) attended the morning presentations by industry experts.  Jennifer Bickel, MD, FAAN, FAHS, chief wellness officer at Moffitt Cancer Center and professor of oncologic sciences in the USF Health Morsani College of Medicine, was the first featured speaker of the morning. Her presentation “Organizational Wellness: Expanding the Horizon of Well-being” highlighted key statistical data on the volume of patients seen by a provider experiencing burnout and steps the National Academy of Medicine is taking to increase wellness across the workforce.  

Richard Westphal, PhD, RN, FAAN, PMHCNS/NP-BC, followed Dr. Bickel.  Dr. Westphal is a professor at the University of Virginia School of Nursing and co-director of the Wisdom and Wellbeing Program at UVA Health.  His presentation “Stress First Aid: Nurturing Resilience in Health Care Professionals” focused on sources of mental stress, how the mind reacts to the stress and team-based solutions centered around well-being. 

Judy Davidson, DNP, RN, MCCM, a nurse scientist at the University of California-San Diego, was the final featured speaker of the morning. Her presentation “Saving Lives: Suicide Prevention and Health Care Interventions” focused on the suicide rates of health care professionals, re-imagining some of the available interventional tools and changing the mental health-related questions on licensing boards. 
 
The morning sessions ended after Donna Petersen, ScD, MHS, CPH, dean of the USF Health College of Public Health, senior associate vice president of USF Health and chief health officer of USF, led an interprofessional panel discussion themed “Unlocking Wellness: Exploring a Toolkit for Inner Balance and Resilience.”  Panelists gave their perspectives on the importance of health care professionals working with a healthy work-life balance and how a better work-life balance will lead to better work environments and more positive patient outcomes. 
 
Panelists: 
–        Kelly Allegro, PT, DPT, board-certified clinical specialist in neurologic physical therapy, co-director of clinical education at the USF Health School of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Sciences
–        Kristin Kosyluk, PhD, assistant professor of Mental Health Law and Policy in the Department of Mental Health Law and Policy at the Louis de la Parte Florida Mental Health Institute, director of the STigma Action Research (STAR) Lab
–        Abraham A. Salinas-Miranda, MD, PhD, MACE, CDVS, assistant professor, director of the Harrell Center for the Study of Family Violence, associate director of the USF Health College of Public Health Center of Excellence in Maternal and Child Health Education Science and Practice
–        Chris Simmons, PhD, LCSW, associate director and associate professor, USF College of Behavioral and Community Sciences School of Social Work

Anthony Masys, CD, PhD, associate professor at the USF Health College of Public Health.

Kicking off the afternoon was Anthony Masys, CD, PhD, associate professor at the USF Health College of Public Health and an international expert in applied systems thinking, design thinking and futures thinking. He gave his presentation titled “Strength-Based Approach: Appreciative Inquiry.” Appreciative inquiry is more commonly known as a strength-based approach to systems change as it emphasizes generating positive ideas instead of identifying negative problems.  

Part of the appreciative inquiry model is using rich pictures to help diagram a way of relating personal experiences and perceptions to situations by linking a series of concepts.  
 
Dr. Masys’ presentation provided the foundation of the group activity and team competition for the event. 

Students split into interprofessional teams of nine to put the concept of appreciative inquiry into practice. Students shared good and bad examples of well-being in their workspaces and colleges and offered solutions on how to enhance the good examples and improve the bad examples.  
 
With the guidance of their faculty preceptors, teams used rich pictures to generate mind maps that illustrated how they plan to improve the overall provider well-being of an organization. Using a “Shark Tank” format, the teams presented their concepts to the sharks in hopes they will buy their concept. 

Sharks (judges):
–        Karen Aul, PhD, RN, CNE, CHSE, USF Health College of Nursing
–        Jennifer Bickel, MD, FAAN, FAHS, Moffitt Cancer Center
–        Somer Burke, EdD, MPH, CPH, USF Health College of Public Health
–        Joe Ford, JD, USF Health Shared Student Services
–        Vickie Lynn, PhD, MSW, MPH, USF College of Behavioral and Community Sciences
 
The IPE Day group activity was designed to encourage interprofessional collaboration among learners through hands-on activity. Teams worked together to conceptualize a strategic vision for how wellness can be operationalized to support organizational and personal wellness. The goals of the activity were to:
–        Understand the application of appreciative inquiry as a strength-based approach to navigating various solutions in the health care domain.
–        Apply a system-thinking approach via rich pictures to support ideation in exploring the problem space from an interdisciplinary perspective.
–        Translate insights from the rich pictures into a mind map to develop a strategic implementation strategy supporting wellness. 
 
One by one, teams presented their concept to the sharks. Teams had three minutes to make compelling arguments about why their concept is the best. 

The sharks narrowed down the field to three teams who then had to prepare a one-minute elevator pitch of their concept to give to the audience. Audience members voted for the winner electronically at the end of the pitches. When the votes were counted, Team Five emerged as the winner. The team’s approach focused on a solution that centered around employees finding balance within their work environment. 

Winning team:
Erini Serag-Bolos, PharmD, associate professor at the USF Health Taneja College of Pharmacy (Preceptor)
Camilla Cardona, USF Health Morsani College of Medicine Physician Assistant Program
Hayden Euper, USF Health School of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Sciences
Christopher Guskie, USF Health Morsani College of Medicine
Rebekah Minter, USF Health Athletic Training Program
Madison Moua, USF Health College of Public Health
Paul Munoz, School of Social Work, College of Behavioral and Community Sciences
Amiah Price, USF Health College of Nursing
Jenna Sabbagh, USF Health Taneja College of Pharmacy

The names of the winning team will the engraved on the IPE Day trophy.  As the team preceptor, Dr. Serag-Bolos will keep the trophy in her office until the USF Health 7th Annual IPE Day. 

Story reposted from USF Health

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The USF College of Public Health (COPH) Academic Affairs and Student Success team received a USF Student Success Award for Academic Excellence.

The Student Success Awards honor individuals and teams who have made exceptional contributions to the university’s student success movement. According to the Student Success website, the Academic Excellence Award is “bestowed on an instructor, department or college for outstanding contributions to improving student success and learning outcomes by implementing technologies, techniques, practices or programs that transform the student experience in the classroom.”

The college’s Academic Affairs and Student Success team was nominated for the award by Dr. Janice Zgibor, a COPH professor and associate dean for academic affairs. 

“Students face many challenges in the best of times, but they were particularly challenged during the pandemic,” wrote Zgibor in her nomination materials. “Having a designated person to address these issues allowed us to make sure those students in need were referred to the relevant resources, whether it was counseling, food resources, academic services, etc. Also, during the pandemic, our entire academic affairs and student success team made sure students had what they needed to transition to remote learning. Additionally, this team supported the faculty during the transition by reaching out to students who were struggling to address any issues the student may be having.”

Zgibor went on to praise the office for decreasing the number of issues that arise with students meeting graduation requirements while admitting the largest master’s degree cohort in the college’s history. “This team continues to amaze me on a daily basis with the efforts they make to go above and beyond to assist students while maintaining the highest levels of integrity,” she added.

Dr. Somer Burke, director of Student Success and Assessment within the college’s Academic Affairs and Student Success office, said she and the team were “flattered” and “excited” to receive the award.

“It really is an honor and a privilege to be able to serve and support the amazing students at the COPH,” Burke, an alumna of the college, said. “At the college, our motto is practice your passion. Thus, while our students are busy practicing their passion for public health, we, as a team, get to practice our passion for our students and their success.”

The team received the award at a Student Success Awards luncheon held April 20.

Story by Donna Campisano, USF College of Public Health

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USF College of Public Health students have continued to find ways to achieve their experiential growth amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Our students have shown perseverance and resilience in their shift to virtual experiential learning,” said Somer Burke, alumna and assistant director of experiential learning at the USF COPH. “Without any warning, students were asked to stop their in-person experiences in the spring or change their plans for in-person experiences this summer and fall. In almost all cases, the students embraced the change and made the transition easily. Our students, faculty, and community partners have worked together to find alternative ways for students to meet their program requirements while providing beneficial support to the community organizations. Through creative approaches that rely heavily on technology, our students have continued to work in our local, national, and international communities.”

Rolando Trejos Saucedo, MPH student and board member of the USF COPH’s Activist Lab, is one such student who found a way to gain additional experience virtually this summer.

Through a partnership between Ponce Health Sciences University in Puerto Rico and Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa, Fla., Trejos Saucedo was trained for 11 weeks via the  Cancer 101 training program on how to deliver cancer education to “Spanish preferring communities.”

“Students from different health colleges of USF engaged in topics regarding cancer prevention in the Latinx community in the United States and became certified as a trainer,” he said. “This cohort was the first fully-online.”

Trainees of the program focused on the differences between the Latinx community and the U.S. in areas including risk factors for cancer, principles in cancer treatment, cancer and chronic diseases, survivors and caregiver support, supporting future cancer research, and HPV and cancer, among others.

“This training program allowed me to deepen my understanding of the epidemiology of cancer, the influence of  race/ethnicity in the prognosis and response to cancer prevention and treatment, the importance of cancer research for public health, and the implications of clinical research participation to advance cancer treatment and improve survival rates,” Trejos Saucedo said. “This training program allowed me to apply of this knowledge to underrepresented populations in research­­—the Latinx community in the United States.”

Trejos Saucedo, an international student from Panama, said having this experience helped to compliment all he’s learning while earning his MPH.

“Having this opportunity to work with the Latinx community regarding cancer further motivates me to work on reducing disparities in cancer treatment based on race and/or ethnicity. It also helps to understand how my work as a master of public health student could help allocate resources and justify the need for culturally competent and diverse policies, programs, and interventions,” he said.

He said he also credits the program for opening him up to more possibilities in the future.

“When I started this training, I had limited knowledge in cancer research, but by the end it was clear that cancer research is a research area that I am passionate about and I hope to get more involved in future cancer research initiatives like understanding how intersecting identities impact the prognosis and survival among cancer patients,” he said.

Ayesha Salar, MPH student who also serves as president of the Epidemiology and Biostatistics Student Organization and director of professional development for the Public Health Student Association, spent her summer as an intern with the Centene Corporation, a managed care organization and Fortune 100 company.

She said she learned about the virtual internship, which ran from May 19 to Aug. 7, through LinkedIn and decided to apply.

Salar, who interned as a data analyst for quality, medicare strategy, helped to analyze data to develop member health profiles to serve as a cross-section of analytics and inform health plans on their robust and unique membership make up.

“I also conducted data analysis on members with chronic diseases to elicit themes and trends to understand their continuum of care and the ability to react to prevention and wellness activities. These analyses supported targeting methodology and rationale for strategic campaigns and initiatives to achieve Centene’s mission­­—Transforming communities, one person at a time,” she said.

“It was amazing to see how much the company invested in the virtual interns and had a complete intern team dedicated to provide remarkable experience and unending support with webinars, meet and greets with executive leadership and training sessions,” she said. “The entire leadership at Centene from my director, Anthony Allegretta, to the entire quality team embraced me from day one. I was also teamed up with two mentors, Gabbie Scholz and Joshua Littleton, who provided close guidance helping me understand the industry standards and process quickly. Overall, I was amazed by the leadership at Centene, which builds an inclusive workplace where individuals have the support to learn, generate ideas, and solve problems every day by finding new opportunities for growth and innovation.” 

Salar said the internship experience has helped her to grow professionally.

“I developed better problem-solving skills, principled agility to adapt to frequent changes with the current COVID-19 situation to be able to deliver better healthcare for members in the community,” she said. “I also developed interprofessional skills along with data analytical skills by analyzing real-time data. I truly believe this internship experience transformed me in multiple ways through which I can continue to make significant contributions in the field of Public Health.”

A group of USF COPH students—Carla Salazar, Wendy Duncan, Sharonda Lovett, Si Ning Chan, Summer Hargreaves, Shalon McCarty, Kadija Nathan, Christopher Jalicki, Matthew McCullough, Alison Colyer, Khushali Vashi, Linda Zoungrana, Kelly Simpson—joined BroadStreet’s COVID-19 Data Project Internship.

BroadStreet, a data and software company for social good, provides “public good tools that allow professionals to spend their time and resources on improving community health and is a collaboration of approximately 300 students, statisticians, epidemiologists, health care experts, data scientists and other passionate professionals who are committed to having the most accurate, community level data about the COVID-19 positive tests and fatality rates, COVID-19 executive orders, and COVID-19 positive tests and fatality rates broken down by race and ethnicity.” 

“The BroadStreet COVID-19 Data Project is a great example of a new opportunity that arose due to the pandemic,” Burke said. “The project was completed virtually, allowing our students to work with students from all over the country on a project that is beneficial and relevant. Our students now have practical experience in tracking and collecting data, data visualization, working with an interprofessional team, and collaborating remotely to take with them into their future public health career.”

MPH student Sharonda Lovett, president of the Maternal and Child Health Student Organization, served as the quality assurance lead of the Southeast region.

She supervised a team investigating inconsistent trends in data over time, working on data quality assurance methods for 627 counties in seven states. The Southeast region included Alabama, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia.

“Participating in any effort that allows us to better understand the novel coronavirus disease, especially as an emerging public health professional, is an unprecedented training opportunity,” Lovett said. “Through this experience, I have been able to enhance my skill development related to infectious disease surveillance systems and data visualizations. One of the core functions of epidemiology is that it can (and should) be used to guide policy development. Without data and continued surveillance efforts, we would not know as much about COVID-19 as we do right now. It is important to have the most accurate representation of data to identify hotspots and guide prevention measures, which may ultimately stop the spread of the virus.”

To see BroadStreet data, visit: http://covid19dataproject.org

Story by Anna Mayor, USF College of Public Health

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The USF College of Public Health held a celebration and reception on Friday, October 4 to recognize and honor the contributions and work of faculty and staff at their 5, 15, 20, 30 and 35 year service milestones.

“Whether we are faculty, staff, administrators or leaders all of us are part of the fabric of the College of Public Health which enables us to do the work that we do. That which helps us grow and improve lives,” COPH Dean Donna Petersen said.

A tradition for the COPH, the Annual Length of Service Awards, began as a simple gesture in 2009. This year 22 faculty and staff members were honored.

Congratulations to all employees who celebrated milestone years of service in 2019!

5 Years of Service: Debora Casandra, Theresa Crocker, Meleine Desir, Gidi Hendrix, Rays Jiang, Thanh Le, Jennifer Marshall, Adam Marty, Tali Schneider, Ronee Wilson and Elizabeth Woodcock

15 Years of Service: Donna Petersen, Somer Burke, Bill Donahue, Michael Haywood, Natalie Preston, Angela Salem and Peggy Smith

20 Years of Service: Etienne Pracht

30 Years of Service: Thomas Bernard and Yehia Hammad

35 Years of Service: Jay Wolfson

Click here to view all pictures from the Length of Service Awards.

Story by Caitlin Keough, USF College of Public Health

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Eleven students from the USF College of Public Health (COPH) skipped the beach this past summer and instead worked in conjunction with Hillsborough County Health Care Services to provide quality health care for Tampa’s residents.

As interns for the Healthy Living Program, the students recruited community agencies, such as food vendors, to volunteer during open houses at the program’s Plant City, Lee Davis and South Shore (Ruskin) Community Resource Centers. These centers serve residents who live below 110 percent of the poverty level but don’t qualify for other health coverage.

Interns worked several open houses at three Hillsborough County community centers. (Photo by Janelle Barrero Ikan)

In addition, the graduate students developed a community health care needs assessment over the course of three months aimed toward benefitting at-risk populations in the Hillsborough County area. The assessment was focused on pinpointing the reasons why many residents experience difficulty when trying to access health care services.

Eleven USF COPH students were able to impact the lives of many vulnerable populations throughout Hillsborough County over the course of their internship with the Healthy Living Program. (Photo by Barrero Ikan)

“The Healthy Living Program began welcoming students several years ago in order to get the community centers and wellness initiatives up and running, and we have had groups [interning] there consistently since,” said Somer Burke, the COPH’s assistant director of experiential learning.

Renée Wallace, a second-year MPH candidate and intern with the Healthy Living Program, noted that every single day on the job was an opportunity to impact the community’s health in a positive way.

“On a day-to-day basis, we would register people for the free fitness centers, give them orientations on the fitness equipment and educate them on health insurance plans offered via the county at no cost to enrollees,” Wallace said.

After excelling in their work throughout the internship, the students accepted a commendation award from the county.

The Hillsborough County Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) extolled the USF COPH team for their “superb professionalism, dedication, and outstanding work ethic demonstrated throughout [the] internship.”

The students received an award and much praise from the county’s Board of Commissioners for their tireless effort over the course of the summer. (Photo by Somer Burke)

“For me, the greatest benefit of the program was that it allowed us to interact with and learn about members of the community,” Wallace commented. “This gave me greater insight into ways we as public health professionals can serve the community and continue to bridge the gap between theory and practice.”

Story by Cody Brown, USF College of Public Health

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Seven USF College of Public Health students received a proclamation from the Board of County Commissioners (BOCC). They were recognized in January for their work with Hillsborough County Health Care Services’ Healthy Living Program during the 2017 State of the Opioid Crisis in Hillsborough County Summit on September 26. 

The daylong summit addressed this rising public health issue by featuring medical, mental health and law enforcement officials. 

The COPH students receiving their proclamation from the Board of County Commissioners (Photo courtesy of Burke).

Somer Burke, COPH’s assistant director of experiential learning, coordinated an agreement between the College and Hillsborough County’s Department of Health Care Services. Last fall, the department welcomed its inaugural cohort of seven graduate students for a practice experience. 

The cohort included masters students Thomas Agrusti, Bianca Anuforo, Janelle Ikan, Taylor Lasure, Michelle Lyman, Alexis Pullia and Jana Woodall. 

The Healthy Living Program provides residents living at or below 110% of the poverty level who do not qualify for other coverage, including Medicare and Medicaid, access to health care through the Hillsborough County Health Care Plan. 

As interns, the students researched various topics of interest to the county and provided various recommendations based on their individual areas of expertise on how the program could be improved to address the needs of the county. They also helped to organize and facilitate the functions of the opioid summit. 

“The award demonstrates to us as students the commitment and appreciation that the BOCC has for students and the work they do to better their communities and improve the lives of some of the most vulnerable populations of people struggling with paramount issues like opioid addiction,” Agrusti said. 

(From left to right) Michelle Lyman, Jana Woodall, Thomas Agrusti, Bianca Anuforo, Janelle Ikan, and Taylor Lasure; not pictured Alexis Pullia (Photo courtesy of Burke).

“Healthy Living Department Director Gene Early and his team saw a space where our talented COPH students could assist their organization while gaining invaluable experience in real-world public health practice,” Burke said. “The opportunity for students to give back to the community while completing their field experience requirement is one of the highlights of the program.” 

Story by Caitlin Keough, USF College of Public Health 

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Public Health Thank You Day is November 20^th.

The USF College of Public Health, in partnership with the American Public Health Association, Research!America and leading public health organizations, is celebrating public health professionals who work tirelessly every day to protect the health of all people and all communities.

Public Health Thank You Day is the Monday before Thanksgiving. In observance of the occasion, the COPH is highlighting individuals who share their time and knowledge with current students via mentorship, internship and other career development vehicles.

Here are a few ways COPH alumni and other public health professionals are preparing the next generation to protect and improve the health of others.

In the fall 2016 semester, the Department of Health Policy and Management officially launched their Alumni Mentor Program.

The program matches current second year students with experienced HPM alumni to participate in a mentoring relationship and provide student mentees the opportunity to build their career network while learning from the experiences of more seasoned professionals.

“When I arrived to the department, I saw that we collected alumni data but we didn’t use it in a meaningful way.  With so many opportunities for us to tap into our alumni network, for the benefit of our students, I proposed launching an Alumni Mentor Program which the department readily welcomed,” said Sara Spear, academic services administrator for HPM.

This fall there are 17 pairs of mentors and mentees, with several of the alumni being returning mentors.

Matching the students and alumni is based on a variety of criteria such as, career aspirations, years of experience, what they hope to get out of the program, personal hobbies/interests, and preferred modes of communications.

Students find the program useful, as evidenced by their feedback.

“My mentor has been great! She has always been there to talk with me, provide guidance, and help me network with other people affiliated with USF. I can’t say enough good things about her and how beneficial the program has been for me so far.” – Current student

“Some of the activities that we have done that may be helpful for others were reading over her cover letters and resumes for which I provided her feedback and edits. She also had a couple of Skype interviews scheduled so we did a mock interview to help her prepare.” –Alumnus

“We have monthly phone meetings that last around an hour. We discuss any professional progress made by me, potential opportunities for me to apply for based on my interests. He shares his own experiences and potential opportunities for me within his company. He also discusses which skills and subject material is imperative.” – Current student

Alumni mentor Carol Ann A’Hearn with MHA/MPH student Sabrina Wise (Photo courtesy of Sara Spear).

“We want to instill in our students that throughout their career, they will need advice and support from others in the field who have gone before them,” said Dr. Sandra Potthoff, professor and chair of HPM. “Alumni are enthusiastic about helping the next generation of healthcare and public health leaders succeed. They remember what it was like when they were students, the types of questions they had, and the uncertainties they felt. Their willingness to share their advice and wisdom with students early in their careers helps our students’ success, and instills in our students the culture of helping those who will follow them.”

In addition to mentoring, alumni serve as guest speakers in classes, judges at student case presentations, and serve on the HPM advisory board. Alumni also provide internship and fellowship opportunities within their organizations and donate to support a fund that sends HPM students to national case competitions.

“We can’t thank the alumni enough for their willingness to share their talent, their time, and their treasure with our students and faculty,” Potthoff said. “We greatly appreciate their support of all that we do!”

***

Somer Burke is assistant director of experiential learning. In this role, she coordinates field experience and other practice opportunities for COPH students who must earn curriculum-required experience credits to complete their degrees.

According to Burke, COPH students dedicate more than 38,000 hours a year to gaining experience in the field. They learn under the mentorship of community partners and alumni, who represent about 15% of the preceptors.

Recently, Burke coordinated an agreement between COPH and Hillsborough County’s Department of Health Care Services. This fall, the department welcomed its inaugural cohort of seven graduate students for a practice experience.

Students participating in field experience at the Hillsborough County Department of Health Care Services. From left to right: Jana Leyrer, Taylor LaSure, Michelle Lyman, Bianca Anuforo, Janelle Barrera. Not pictured: Alexis Pullia, Thomas Agrusti (Photo courtesy of Burke).

The department provides residents living at or below 110% of the poverty level who do not qualify for other coverage, including Medicare and Medicaid, access to health care through the Hillsborough County Health Care Plan.

“The Healthy Living Department Director Gene Early and his team saw a space where our talented COPH students could assist their organization while gaining invaluable experience in real-world public health practice,” Burke said. “The opportunity for students to give back to the community while completing their field experience requirement is one of the highlights of the program.”

***

The COPH’s Integrated Dietetic Internship-MPH program matched its first cohort of six interns in the fall of 2017.

Students matched in the program will gain hands on experience in dietetics practice through the internship, which has been granted candidacy status for accreditation by the Accreditation Council for Education in Nutrition and Dietetics.

“Our graduates are not only going to be graduating prepared to be entry level registered dietitian nutritionists, they are going to have that core MPH foundation as well,” said Dr. Theresa Crocker director of the program and assistant professor in the Department of Community and Family Health. “Students will be ready to go out there and transform practice with what they have learned.”

Dr. Theresa Crocker and the inaugural Integrated Dietetic Internship-MPH program cohort (Photo by Caitlin Keough).

According to Crocker, the concentration is geared toward dietetic interns who are on the pathway to becoming registered dietitian nutritionists.

The integrated program is 20 months long and requires a minimum of 1,200 hours of supervised practicum falling into three categories: clinical, community and food service.

Clinical rotation partners include Tampa General Hospital, Moffitt Cancer Center and John Hopkins All Children’s Hospital. Food service experiences will also take place at Tampa General Hospital.

However, it’s the community experience that Crocker says sets the program apart from others.

“We have a public health focus and population health frame for it,” Crocker said. “So, interns get to do a lot of unique rotations, for example they are going to be interning at Meals on Wheels, Feeding Tampa Bay, The Dairy Council, USF Health Services, Davita, James A. Haley V.A Hospital, the Florida Department of Health, and with registered dietitians who are entrepreneurs in private practice.”

One of the interns, Samantha Wholley, said nutrition and dietetics is her passion because she has seen firsthand what a positive impact teaching people how to have healthy and meaningful relationships with food can have.

“With this being a new program that USF has to offer, I hope to contribute to its success and adhere to the goals set forth for all interns and students,” Wholley said.  “I hope to make long lasting connections that can aid in facing the nutrition-related problems in my community.”

Story by Caitlin Keough and Danyelle Arnow, USF College of Public Health

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Without question, Monday, Nov. 6 was a memorable night for the USF College of Public Health.

More than 100 current and aspiring Bull public health professionals were in Atlanta for the American Public Health Association Annual Meeting. They spent the early part of the day presenting their research, leading roundtable discussions, and learning from peers via scheduled sessions.

But, the evening belonged to USF!

COPH graduate students indicate how they will advance the public’s health. (Photo by Kristen Slusser)

Visitors to the COPH booth at APHA shared their commitment to public health. (Photo by Kristen Slusser)

“Delta Omega is the national honor society for public health, a society that recognizes excellence and innovation in academic public health and public health practice,” Dean Donna Petersen said. “Somer’s election to the leadership board speaks to the high regard Delta Omega members have for USF and to Somer’s reputation as a proven leader in promoting excellence in public health practice experiences for all of our students.”

Somer Burke is COPH’s assistant director of experiential learning and an alumna. In her dual role as president of USF’s Tau Chapter and Delta Omega member at-large, she joins the executive committee who will make recommendations on advancing the national organization and its mission.

At Delta Omega’s annual business meeting, COPH alumna Somer Burker was elected member at-large to the board of directors. (Photo courtesy of Somer Burke)

Doctoral student Caitlin Wolfe and undergraduate Shahrzad Zamani were two of 19 students selected to represent USF at the Annual Delta Omega Student Poster Session. The event encourages and recognizes public health leaders of tomorrow.

“As a student who didn’t submit anything for the regular APHA sessions, I really appreciated the opportunity to attend and present at the Delta Omega session,” Wolfe said. “I had some great conversations and learned about additional organizations and conferences. The highlight was I was encouraged to submit work related to my Delta Omega abstract along with a personal recommendation from attendees interested in my poster!”

Doctoral student Caitlin Wolfe presented her research at Delta Omega’s poster session in Atlanta. (Photo courtesy of Wolfe)

“It was motivating to see a conference of this large capacity filled with public health professionals working toward healthier communities,” Zamani said. “I am very proud to be representing the Tau Chapter and for this opportunity to present my research.”

Zamani’s study is the first and only undergraduate student research to ever be presented at the poster session.

Shahrzad Zamani is the first undergraduate invited to present research at the Annual Delta Omega Poster Session. (Photo by Ellen Kent)

The final Delta Omega kudos went to USF’s Tau Chapter.

“Ellen Kent worked tirelessly to represent all of the great things happening with our Tau Chapter and deserved the recognition of winning one of two 2017 Chapter of the Year Awards,” Burke said. “Our students were also presented with their awards at the meeting, so it was a time of real celebration for the College of Public Health!”

Ellen Kent with a certificate noting that USF’s Tau Chapter is one of two earning the chapter of the year designation from Delta Omega. The award was presented in Atlanta during APHA. (Photo by Natalie Preston)

Just as the Delta Omega festivities were wrapping up, the COPH’s annual reception was gearing up.

Then everything went dark. The entire city block lost power.

(Photo by Natalie Preston)

“We had about 45 minutes to figure out a plan B before the event started at 6:30 p.m.,” said Natalie Preston, COPH’s director of engagement and constituent relations. “Restaurant staff scrambled to secure votives and portable lighting while I finished setting up what I could see. Thankfully, temperatures were mild and we had access to the rooftop patio. Buildings across the street provided some light.”

According to Preston, a line of Bulls wrapped down the stairs as they waited to sign in at a welcome table lit only by the emergency light from an exit sign.

“There were about 30 to 40 attendees there at the start and they were not deterred by the power outage,” she said.

(Photo by Natalie Preston)

“Power was restored around 7 p.m. and was greeted by a round of applause from guests and restaurant staff!” Preston said.

Attendees included COPH alumni, faculty, staff and students, as well as colleagues from USF, community partners, collaborators at other public health organizations and prospective students.

COPH alumni and students enjoyed the rooftop patio. (Photo by Natalie Preston)

Undergraduate Shahrzad Zamani welcomed attendees and shared her recent Delta Omega experience. She invited alumni to support fellow students by sharing their time, talent and treasure with current USF COPH students. (Photo by Natalie Preston)

“Even though the evening got off to an unexpected start, the reception went just as planned,” Preston said. “Alumni yelled with excitement upon seeing fellow grads and favorite professors. Staff like me were able to interact with prospective students. And, I observed current students networking with alumni.”

Preston shared that upon exiting the venue, she was approached by COPH alumna Lindsey King who indicated a group was moving the after party to the main restaurant.

“Yep, the reception went just as planned—Bulls united,” Preston said.  “Can’t ask for more than that.”

(Photo by Natalie Preston)

(Photo by Natalie Preston)

(Photo by Natalie Preston)

Staff writer, USF College of Public Health

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The post The night belonged to USF appeared first on College of Public Health News.

The USF College of Public Health hosted its annual Free Flu Shot Drive on Friday, Oct. 20.

In its 21st year, the drive provided 845 doses of the flu vaccine on a first come, first served basis, to the Tampa Bay community.

MCOM resident physician David Almario administered flu shots to the public (Photo by Ryan Noone).

The longstanding community service is a collaboration between the College of Public Health, the College of Nursing, the Morsani College of Medicine, USF Health and the Florida Department of Health – Hillsborough County.

USF public health, nursing, and medical students volunteered their time and skills to help with the Free Flu Shot Drive (Photo by Ellen Kent).

USF nursing and medical students, who have already successfully completed clinical training, administered the shots under the clinical supervision of an interdisciplinary team.

Margaret Ewen, MSPH, BSN, RN, registered nurse and CON adjunct faculty instructor, and MCOM faculty are among those who supervised students.

CON faculty Margaret Ewen reviews the vaccination process for the day with nursing students (Photo by Natalie Preston).

“The vaccines are provided free to the public because the COPH underwrites the cost the vaccine, which is supplied by the Florida Department of Health – Hillsborough County,” said Ellen Kent, MPH, CPH, coordinator of COPH Student Research Grants, the Sunshine ERC and USF Health Service Corps.

COPH students interacted with attendees and taught public health facts through a Jeopardy display (photo by Ellen Kent).

The event also included educational displays from public health student and community groups, on topics ranging from epidemiology of the flu to pediatric vaccination recommendations.

COPH Dean Donna Petersen received her flu shot at the drive (Photo by Ellen Kent).

According to the Florida Department of Health, it is estimated that between 15% and 40% of the population will develop illness from influenza every year.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that everyone six months of age and older receive the flu vaccine, as the contagious respiratory virus can lead to severe illness or even death, placing children under five, pregnant women and adults ages 65 and older at higher risk.

COPH alumna Somer Burke, assistant director of graduate advising and practice programs in the Office of Academic and Student Affairs, organized a way for community members with special needs to receive their free flu shots (Photo by Ryan Noone).

“The flu shot is particularly useful because not only can someone keep themselves safe, but they can actually protect the community,” said Jill Roberts, PhD, assistant professor in the COPH. “With herd immunity, the more of us that get vaccinated, the less people will get influenza.”

Flu season typically runs from October to May in the U.S., with peaks occurring between December and February, according to the CDC. To view the latest influenza surveillance tracking data, visit the CDC’s FluView webpage.

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To see more photos of the event, visit the COPH’s Facebook photo album. See photos by Ellen Kent here.

View related story here.

Story by Caitlin Keough, USF College of Public Health , and Ryan Noone, USF Communications & Marketing 

The post 21 years of fighting the flu appeared first on College of Public Health News.